These Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins were to die for. I followed this recipe exactly and loved her tip to save half of the chocolate chips and sprinkle them on top before they go into the oven. This blogger knows what she’s doing (not to mention her blog design and photos are gorgeous) – I’m going to need to try some more of her recipes stat.

Our friend Jordan whipped up some sweet and spicy bacon right before our eyes and was kind enough to let me take some notes. After tasting it I was sure glad I’d paid close attention!

Ingredients: Bacon, brown sugar, black pepper and cayenne pepper.

Directions: Sprinkle bacon with sugar as shown (about a quarter cup) and give a gentle shake of cayenne pepper and several twists of freshly grated black pepper. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees, flip and repeat. Word of warning: This is not a recipe that you want to burn, so hold off on the mimosas until after it’s out of the oven.

Voila!

And don’t tell my guests, but I played it safe with a semi-homemade version of biscuits and gravy that was simmering in the crockpot when guests arrived. Along with the many tasty additions brought along by guests, these recipes made for a delicious brunch.

I’m enjoying all of the little fall touches around the house, but cannot wait to replace them with Christmas decor! After a successful brunch, Danny and I left clean up behind and followed our guests out the front door to catch a show. Handel’s Messiah was performed at Shaghoian Concert Hall. This is the second show we’ve caught there and are over the moon for the acoustics.

There’s a reason breakfast and lunch were given their own celebrity-style couples name and a late lunch never became linner. We’ve been searching for a good brunch in this town and finally decided to do it ourselves. It turns out I’m more of a morning person than I thought!